


The Lighter Side

by audreyslove



Series: Let It Rain [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-11-08 16:06:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20838281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/audreyslove/pseuds/audreyslove
Summary: Written for #IBOQ2019 based on a lovely manip by @starscythe.





	The Lighter Side

Regina has a soft spot for weddings now.

She was never one of  _ those  _ women. She never dreamed of her own wedding as a child. She doesn’t have a secret Pinterest account with ideas for her fairytale wedding, she doesn’t watch endless romantic comedies and picture herself as the heroine. 

In fact, she typically thinks of weddings as far too cheesy and filled with trite romantic dreams.

But then she went and did the most cliche and cheesy thing possible and met the love of her life at a wedding and everything changed.

She had been dreading her friend Isabelle’s wedding for some time. “Tinks”, as she’s known, can be one of those hopeless romantics. Regina assumes her wedding will be right out of a hallmark movie, and she wasn’t ready to drown in pink roses and heartfelt speeches.

She was prepared to keep her thoughts to herself. It was incredibly sweet of Tinks to ask her to be a bridesmaid, and she wasn’t going to have her regretting that.

She tells Robin about it to downplay the importance of the wedding and casually explain why she thinks it’s not the best idea for him to be her date. But then she finds out that Robin is attending already.

“Wait—you aren’t talking about Neal and Isa’s wedding, are you?” Robin asks when she brings up the upcoming wedding weekend on their third date. “Neal is one of my closest friends. I’m actually  _ in  _ the wedding. I’m a groomsman.”

“I’m a bridesmaid,” Regina murmurs. “This is a hell of a coincidence.”

Or maybe not so coincidental. Neal and Tinks are friends of Mulan and Ruby. In fact, Neal and Tinks set the two of them up (mostly Tinks, the matchmaker that she is). It stands to reason that they’d both know them considering their mutual friends.

Still, though, it catches her by surprise.

“Some might say it’s fate. Maybe the universe had a few backup plans in case I screwed up our first chance together,” Robin winks at her.

“The universe underestimated how much I like a fixer-upper,” she teases.

The wedding is exactly 8 weeks after they first met.

Regina used to have strict rules about wedding dates — technically the rule was weddings are not places to bring dates. She doesn’t need the drama of a new relationship overshadowing what should be a fun time with friends and family. She had made an exception for Graham — and even that took her well over a year to do. Of course, after being so utterly wrong about him, she really shouldn’t trust her vetting process.

She had felt serious about this thing with Robin almost immediately. He’s so witty and smart, good looking but not full of himself, self-deprecating but not annoyingly so, not in the “I'm fishing for compliments” way. He’s down to earth. And then there’s the fact that he adores her and treats her wonderfully. He didn’t place her on a pedestal or shower her in fake compliments. He doesn’t fill her up with empty gestures or act like she’s some helpless damsel in need of saving. He just understands her in a way no one else will. 

It’s a bit nerve-wracking, though, to be attending a wedding together so early in their relationship. She knows Robin feels the same way about them. They haven’t exactly discussed it, but there was a moment after they spent two hours mocking and laughing at some insanely bad romantic comedy that Robin got a bit sentimental.

“I  _ really  _ like you, you know,” he had said to her.

“I know,” she had answered coyly.

“More than I’ve ever liked anyone,” he had told her. “I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed myself the way I do when I’m around you. Don’t you let me fuck this up. I don’t want to lose this.”

Regina had rolled her eyes and waved his words off, and the banter and jokes returned. But she knew he was revealing something quite serious.

They’ve not said the words yet, but Regina is in love and she’s fairly certain Robin is as well. This is lightning quick for Regina. She has always dipped her toe into relationships and waded in with an abundance of caution.

But Robin coaxed her into diving in headfirst with playful banter and devilish games.

So here’s a man she just met but is already head-over-heels for, and they will be each other’s dates for their mutual friend’s wedding.

Things are  _ really  _ moving fast.

Of course, once Tinks and Neal realize that their friends are dating, they decide to match the two up for the festivities.

And Tinks has already made multiple joking-yet-not-joking comments about t how this wedding is a good trial run for Robin and Regina’s own future nuptials.

Ordinarily, the jokes would have Regina terrified of the future, of making such a big commitment, but this time she’s just laughing along with the bride and her girls, rolling her eyes playfully as they tease her about her very new romance.

She’s in a god damned light pink — no, almost peach bridesmaid dress and Tinks has dictated to a stylist to put her hair in “beachy, romantic curls”, yet Regina isn’t running for the hills. That is progress, she assumes.

It’s her friend’s wedding but a lot of the conversation, while they get ready, is oddly fixated around  _ Regina. _

Tinks elbows Regina as she goes to get her hair done. “So, walking down the aisle with your man, are you excited?”

Regina gives Tinks her most dramatic eye roll. “Thank you for matching us together l, but no, I won’t find the walk down the aisle to be exciting. It’s just a ceremony for  _ you. _ And you are acting as if I’ve never had a date before. It’s weird.”

“But this is the first boyfriend you have ever had that we’ve all actually  _ liked,” _ Tink reminds, and Regina cringes.

“Daniel was nice,” Regina defends.

“Yeah, but we never met him,” Tinks reminds. “I’m sure he was fine. But Jefferson, Ed Hyde, and fuck, Graham? It was like you were punishing yourself with those assholes.”

“Ruby says that Robin is the happiest they’ve ever seen. And that he’s completely smitten with her,” Mary Margaret chips out.

_ That  _ makes her feel warm and soft inside. It forces a smile out of her though she tries to bite it back for the sake of her company. 

“Robin is completely smitten with  _ everything,”  _ she says in a desperate attempt to discount how much this piece of gossip means to her. “He’s smitten about autumn, about donuts, brandy, smitten with both the rain and the sunshine—“

“Oh shut up and admit that he’s gaga over you,” MaryMargaret laughs. “I’ll send you my favorite colors for the bridesmaid dresses at your wedding. Have you set a date yet?”

Regina grits her teeth. They are teasing her, she knows this. But what they don’t know is that she’s already  _ thought  _ about a wedding with him, and that’s something she’s never done before with anyone. This is hitting a bit too close to home. 

“Have I met Robin?” Ashley asks. “I can’t place him.”

“He walked with Regina in the wedding procession rehearsal,” Mary Margaret gushes, “He’s very handsome. They make a darling couple.”

Regina grimaces. “Well, we didn’t get together because we thought we’d be aesthetically pleasing to you all, Mary Margaret.”

“I know!” she giggles, “But that is an added bonus, isn’t it?”

“I guess,” Regina shrugs.

She doesn’t know how they will look together now, as she drowns in pastels. 

It’s not that she hates this outfit — not at all — she just never saw herself as the type of woman who can pull off the light and girly looks. She’s a dark and stormy type, the brooding one in the corner who wears black or navy into a daytime outdoor wedding in July.

It has her feeling a bit of her skin as they make their way to the church. She takes her place in line and nervously looks around for Robin.

He’s nowhere to be found.

For a split second she wonders if this was just too much, too soon. It’s not their wedding, but they are still walking down that aisle together, in front of a priest and all their friends, surrounded by huge bouquets of flowers and silk sashes.

Maybe it’s too much.

But she remembers how he looks at her, how excited he seemed for this wedding, and she realizes she’s being ridiculous.

She hears Robin, then, before she can see him. “Sorry, minor groom emergency, we’ve sorted it now.”

He hurries over to join her. She expects him to give her a kiss and tease her about her outfit, but instead, he just stands there slack-jawed and wide-eyed.

“I know, I look like Princess Peach,” Regina laughs, looking down at her pink dress. She sighs, “Come on, give it to me already. You’ve been waiting to laugh at me in this dress all month, so let’s hear it.”

“It’s not funny anymore,” he admits. He takes a moment, backs up just enough to get a full view of her, then sighs. “You look gorgeous. I didn’t expect it to suit you this way but it’s… you just look so beautiful.”

“Really?” she asks.

“Yeah,” he smiles back, looking absolutely awestruck.

Her voice drops down to a whisper, “It’s not my usual style—“

“Which I love!” Robin is quick to assure, “I didn’t mean to say—“

“I know,” Regina says, holding her hand up to stop Robin from apologizing. “I was just going to say it’s not my usual style so I didn’t expect to like it so much. It didn’t seem to fit my personality. I’m more of an edgy dresser, and I like dark colors to match my sou, I guess. But this… I don’t hate this.”

“Maybe you’re lighting up a bit,” he winks at her. “Going soft in your old age.”

“Don’t count on that,” she warns. “I’m just as prickly and evil as I’ve always been.”

“Mm,” Robin hums, looking thoroughly unconvinced.

They walk down the aisle together, and Regina has to admit it feels wonderful and significant. Like the start of something new.

There are no games for this wedding. No competition. She also doesn’t silently judge the decorations or cringe at the fairytale atmosphere that Tink has created in this historic mansion.

She finds it all rather sweet, actually.

As Robin draws her close and asks her to dance, she can’t resist. His tie matches her dress, which is incredibly cheesy, perhaps, but it just feels right as they move and laugh together.

“I don’t think anything will top Ruby and Mulan’s wedding, but I’m quite enjoying myself tonight,” he whispers in her ear as they dance.

“It’s nice,” Regina admits, “I’m trying to find something to be annoyed about but I… I guess my usual cynicism is taking a break.”

“Embrace it, just for tonight,” Robin tells her, rubbing his nose against hers. 

“I’m going to,” she says, “Get in all the snappiness for tonight. Dark and Snarky Regina returns first thing in the morning.”

“But Dark and Snarky Regina quite enjoys my sappiness, too,” he teases, kissing her forehead. 

She shivers and pulls in close and tucks her chin into Robin’s shoulder. “Maybe a little,” she admits.

“Maybe a lot,” Robin mutters into her ear. 

She can’t even argue with him. So she sighs and lets him lead on the dance floor. They move together so well, they are so in sync in so many ways.

She’s lucky to have him, or rather, they are lucky to have each other. 

It might be too soon to say this out loud, but she’s never been perfect with timing, anyway, and she’s indulging in her softer side right now, anyway, so…

“I’m falling in love with you, Robin,” she whispers, shutting her eyes tight as she breathes out the words.

“You are?” he asks pulling back so he can see her face. She struggles not to keep her eyes closed. He looks at her, not too excited or stunned, just… 

He just looks happy.

He kisses her deeply and eagerly, enough to make her laugh, until they are pressing smile to smile.

“I’m already intensely, deeply in love with you,” Robin tells her when they finally come up for air. “I would have said so earlier, but I didn’t want to scare you off.”

She would have bet he was in love with her, so it’s not surprising to her at all, but hearing him say it  _ does  _ things to her. Her heart beats faster, stronger, there’s a rush of blood to her head that has her feeling dizzy and weightless. 

Thank god he loves her because she sure as hell loves him. 

“I don’t scare so easily,” she promises. She frowns, adding a confession that has her skin flush red with anxiety and embarrassment. “I also, um, don’t fall in love very easily. This is… unexpected.”

“I won’t take this for granted,” Robin promises. “So, I assume this means I’ll be your plus one at the next wedding. I’ve earned it. With you being in love with me and all that.”

He speaks to her in that playful little way that cuts the mood before things become too saccharine sweet. She loves him for that. 

“We’ll see,” Regina drawls. “I’m very selective about my wedding dates, as you know.”

“I’ve already managed to muscle my way into being your date twice,” Robin reminds her. “Pretty confident I can manage a third time.”

He’s right, of course. Maybe she will pretend to fight him on the matter just a little bit. Just for fun.

He likes a bit of a challenge, after all. 


End file.
